


A Place to Rest

by horologiiums



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Friendship, Mindless Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:41:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23991709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/horologiiums/pseuds/horologiiums
Summary: Byleth hasn’t had a full night’s rest all week. Claude offers a helping hand.
Relationships: My Unit | Byleth/Claude von Riegan
Comments: 16
Kudos: 117





	A Place to Rest

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer: I wrote the first few paragraphs before c*vid, big yikes

The last of the frigid winds that accompanied the Pegasus Moon blew relentlessly from the northern reaches of Fódlan, unfailingly instilling a collective chill into the soldiers who resided within the walls of Garreg Mach Monastery. The soil beneath their feet was as solid and cold as diamond that merely standing upon it was enough to freeze the inner workings of a person’s body.

As with such a frozen bitterness, many a warrior fell victim to illness. The malady was nothing far too concerning — at worst, individuals were confined to their private quarters to rest for approximately three days before being able to set out and perform their usual duties once again. Regardless, activity within the monastery slowed considerably and many residents figured it best to hold themselves up in their own rooms in the hopes of avoiding the spread of sickness.

Alas, Byleth was not one such person with the luxury of quarantine, nor did she particularly feel inclined to seek it out. At least, that was how she had felt prior to the sweeping of the ailment across Garreg Mach. One week into the slowdown was finally taking its toll on her; the tasks that needed to be done piled up endlessly and even with help from advisors and forecasters within the army, it was all becoming far too much far too quickly. A break was in order, a full night’s sleep, the sickness rendering all of her closest allies to be incapacitated gone.

But what one needed never seemed to come around quite as easily as what one desired, so with another bracing grunt, Byleth hoisted the bound weapons in need of maintenance into her arms once more and continued her slow, careful toddle from the training grounds to the knights’ hall, where said weapons could receive the repairs and attention they needed.

However, no more than five minutes into her graceless shuffle did Byleth need to drop the gear yet again with a heaving gasp. Bent over with her hands on her thighs, she huffed noisily in a vain attempt at regaining her breath. Typically, physical labor failed to wear Byleth out. Constant mercenary service had been her life’s work prior to becoming a professor at the Officers’ Academy, so she was used to strenuous, bodily taxing jobs. But given the circumstances and current predicament — how she had been engaging in _literal_ heavy lifting for the near entirety of that day — she found herself particularly exhausted.

 _Just one minute…_ she thought ruefully, refusing to admit defeat to her task as though it were an opponent on the battlefield. _Just one minute of rest…_

With that concluding sentence, Byleth flopped down onto her bottom, a merciless shiver rippling through her from the ice cold ground and she almost regretted sitting. But if anything, the chill would keep her awake and prevent her from dozing off; truthfully, she didn’t exactly trust herself to _not_ give into the temptation of a quick nap. Naps were all that she could manage in the past week, so if she did accidentally conk out, she knew it wouldn’t be for too long. A good thing, for if one of the army’s two commanders was found unconscious on the stony, cold floor, it was almost guaranteed that some sort of overdramatic chaos would ensue.

As if on cue with her train of thought, a voice sounded from behind her, though it gratefully was not one of panic nor misconception.

“Hanging in there, my friend?” Judging from where his voice was, he was standing right behind her. How did he always manage to so easily sneak up on her?

Leaning back on her hands and angling her head back, Byleth looked behind her to see Claude towering above her. Given her poor positioning, his appearance was difficult to make out correctly, but she could see that he wasn’t sporting his usual jacket, opting to only wear the loose white shirt he typically wore underneath. Despite the bitterness of the weather, he looked unusually hot, sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, the multitude of loose hairs hanging in front of his forehead clinging to his skin that gleamed with sweat. His lips held a tiny smirk, not out of mockery, but of what Byleth gathered to be understanding. Empathy. Byleth recalled then that Claude had been in charge of his own physically intensive duties that day as well: taking care of organizing new weapons coming into the monastery.

“By a thread.” She said, looking back ahead of her to avoid straining her neck for too long. It wasn't often that Byleth admitted to being troubled — emoting had never been one of her strong suits, had never been something she really even knew how to _do_ before meeting Claude and his fellow classmates — but there was something about Claude that made things… easier. More comfortable. Confessing to having problems, being tired or needing assistance had always been challenges Byleth had little experience in knowing how to solve. She enjoyed helping people, seeing their smiles and faces light up when she was successful in her endeavors. Being someone who needed help when she was so often the one providing guidance was… embarrassing? Not so grave as humiliating, but it was something that Byleth took little pride in.

Claude was an interesting case, being someone who she could confide in, who never saw her for anything less than she was. Yet, she still failed to understand why that was. Maybe it was the way he spoke to her, never refraining from his teasing and straightforwardness. Maybe it was how he looked at her, like she was an ordinary person, not someone who’s heart had never once beat in her entire life, who had the soul of an actual goddess residing within her. Or maybe it was simply because of everything that made him _him._ It was difficult to determine, and perhaps Byleth would never uncover the truth behind the calm and peace he was capable of providing her, but the fact of the matter was that he _was_ capable of providing it, and Byleth trusted him to the point of not caring to question it.

In the midst of her inner turmoil, Claude plopped down next to her. The shudder that raced up his body upon settling on the ground was exaggeratedly violent that Byleth was certain that she could feel it within herself as well.

“Damn, that’s cold.” His whine was spoken in a hushed tone as if he was trying to let it go unheard, but their proximity worked against him.

“Then stand back up.” Byleth suggested matter-of-factly, gesturing at him with her words that followed. “You shouldn’t be outside in such light clothing and when you’re all sweaty. The sickness will be drawn right to you.”

That earned her a classic, playful Claude smirk. “Aw, worried about me?” He teased as he pushed his damp hair back, all but that one, trademark rogue strand of it that hung down the right side of his face staying in place atop his head. “But in all seriousness, you’re absolutely right. I just got to wondering what _you_ were doing sitting here. You’re awfully sweaty yourself.”

Byleth blew a puff of air up her face in the hopes of shifting her fringe out of her eyes. Regrettably, her efforts did not bear fruit; her bangs clung to her forehead from the perspiration that lined her skin just as it did on Claude’s.

“You know what I’ve been doing.” She nodded at the pile of broken weapons laying in front of them. “I needed to catch my breath.”

Claude followed her gaze, tilting his head to the side. “Need help?” When Byleth cast him a curious glance, he shrugged his shoulders easily. “I’m done with my work for the day. We can have tea after.”

Tea. Tea sounded delightful after such a long, arduous day. They had shared many evenings together, sipping tea and discussing whatever topics came to mind. Those times were the moments when the two of them could stop being the commanders of an army, and instead just be two people: Claude and Byleth.

Desperate for the assistance and knowing that she would struggle to accept aid from anyone who wasn’t Claude, Byleth pushed herself to her feet as she replied. “I’m taking these to the knights’ hall. Carry one end for me?”

When she looked back down at Claude from over her shoulder, he wore what looked like a victorious grin, eyes glinting. Had he expected her to be stubborn about his offer, as though getting her to say yes was a competition of some kind? He had always been so strange but she supposed that he was doing no harm in the end, so it ultimately made little difference.

“I’d be honored to.” Claude rose, still smirking.

Standing on either end of the bound weapon wrap, the pair knelt down after a moment of bracing themselves and swept the heavy gear up into their arms. They wobbled at first, trying to adjust the weight of their load evenly. A few more seconds of awkward staggering and swaying later, they found their rhythm. One step after the next, they began their careful trek from the courtyard, through the northernmost part of the reception hall, past the cemetery, before finally reaching the knights’ hall.

The walk hadn’t taken particularly long, a mere seven minutes at most, but it had felt like ten times that long to Byleth, and when she and Claude at last dropped the weapons onto the ground, she unashamedly fell with them, flopping onto her back.

Claude released a breathless laugh from next to her before collapsing himself. He didn’t starfish on his back like Byleth had, but he sprawled out and leaned on an elbow, his other arm wiping the sweat from his forehead. “How were you carrying that on your own?” He asked between breaths.

“The goddess gives me strength.” Byleth managed, only realizing how silly her words sounded after they had already left her lips. It was reminiscent of something a pious believer of the Seiros faith would say, something neither her nor Claude would ever be. In truth, her words had been quite literal — ever since that day five years ago in the Sealed Forest when Sothis had gifted Byleth her powers, her physical limitations exceeded anything she had been capable of before. Though she had never shared this fact with anyone in the past, not even Claude, he seemed to be able to understand the hidden meaning of her answer.

A laugh erupted from his stomach, alongside a weird sounding puff from his nose that Byleth was positive was the beginnings of a snort. Hearing the smile on his face made one come to her own. He wore smiles often, shooting them left and right to nearly every passerby — “a way to keep everyone’s spirits up” he would often say — but hearing him genuinely laugh was a surprisingly rare occurrence. She liked hearing Claude laugh.

“Praise the goddess!” He shouted exaggeratedly before he too finally released his restraint and laid flat beside her.

* * *

As promised by Claude, a spot of tea was in order following the end of their long day, but there was also a mutual agreement that they desperately needed to bathe. Byleth felt grimy and sticky all over, and she was certain that she could smell herself; not very presentable or flattering in the slightest. Upon parting to the separate bath houses, Claude had called to her that they would meet in an hour's time and Byleth nodded in response without a second thought.

Except after said hour had passed — plus an additional fifteen minutes on top of that — Byleth sat alone in her room without so much as a knock on her door from her expected guest. Had he forgotten that they had an arrangement to share tea? No, Claude’s clever mind wouldn’t allow him to so easily forget making plans with someone. Perhaps he was running late. Though that didn’t exactly add up either. Claude had been late for tea parties when he was still a spritely, high energy student — and Byleth knew better that his excuses and overdue appearances back then were only made in an attempt to rile her up — but ever since they reunited after five years of being apart, he consistently made sincere efforts to spend time with her.

Byleth shifted in her chair, poked at the handle of her tea cup and turned it gently. It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility that Claude had been pulled aside by someone who needed to bring something of importance to his attention. Had that been the case, he wouldn’t have had time to run to Byleth’s room and inform her of the unexpected change of events. Still…

Righting her curiously slumped posture, Byleth rose to her feet and departed from her room, making her way to the second floor of the dormitories where Claude’s quarters were located. Important dilemma being dropped on him or not, it was unmistakable how exhausted Claude was — Byleth had seen it firsthand herself just over an hour ago. He had never been one to shirk his responsibilities, as begrudging as he found plenty of them to be, but he also knew better than to push himself too hard. Had he needed to address a new issue, he would most likely have taken it to his room to think on it first.

 _Has he started feeling ill?_ The thought soared across Byleth’s psyche as fast as an arrow fired by none other than Claude himself. She knew that he shouldn’t have wandered around outside in such little clothing while covered in sweat, even if it was for her sake. Actually, the fact that it _was_ for her sake irritated Byleth, and she would have loved to entertain her frustrations with Claude if not for the worry rapidly settling in her stomach like a lead weight. Honestly, what a fool he was.

Hands curling into anxious fists, Byleth quickened her pace on her way to where she hoped her friend laid in wait.

Luckily for Byleth, Claude _was_ cooped up in his room, however out of all of the scenarios that she had concocted in her mind as to his state of well-being, she hadn’t expected him to open the door less than a second after she had knocked, looking somewhat dazed and somewhat… upset?

_At least he doesn’t look sick._

Releasing a puff of air, Claude cleared his throat. “You sure love keeping me waiting, don’t you?” He was teasing, she could tell, but his weariness limited the amount of playfulness that he could conjure. Thankfully, the questionable sadness on his features lifted, replaced by half of a smile.

“You kept _me_ waiting.” Byleth argued back plainly, uselessly.

Claude’s lips twitched. “I invited you.”

“We always have tea in my room.”

“When _you_ invite me.” The words were so blunt that Byleth had to run them through her mind a second time after hearing them. “I invited you.” Claude repeated.

When no words of comeback were capable of leaving Byleth’s lips even after opening and closing her mouth two times in a row, she allowed her shoulders to slump. They weren’t fighting, not really, but surely if she kept chasing their misunderstanding, they would end up standing at the entrance to his quarters for the remainder of the evening in a never ending back-and-forth.

Exhaling through her nose, Byleth sighed silently. “May I come in?”

Her defeat brought Claude’s half smile to a full grin. Stepping to the side, he extended his arm, gesturing his invitation.

Sure enough, two empty cups were placed atop his desk, a simple tea pot with a nigh invisible trail of steam billowing from its spout sitting next to them. Even before Claude closed the door behind them, Byleth identified the gentle, calming aroma of chamomile wafting throughout his room. He had probably prepared the tea a few minutes before their scheduled meeting time so that it would be ready to serve upon her arrival.

 _So much for that._ It was a regrettable thought but the truth all the same; there was little point in fretting over it.

“Have a seat.” Claude’s voice suddenly sounded from behind Byleth and she nearly startled, only just then realizing that she was standing motionless in the middle of his room.

Unsure of where would be appropriate to sit, she eyed his bed which was littered with books and loose pieces of parchment. Whenever the pair met up for tea in her own room, Byleth would procure a second chair for him to use. No such addition was present in Claude’s space, only the chair that was partnered with his desk was available. Perhaps sitting on the floor would be more appropriate than his bed...

Her hesitation must have been obvious. Claude laughed lightly at her stillness but Byleth took no offense; she did feel awfully foolish.

“The bed isn’t gonna bite, my friend.” Circling around her, Claude carelessly shoved some of the books near the deformed pillows at the headboard to the foot of the bed. He patted the space he had cleared away while shooting her an entertained expression. “All clear!” He almost sang the words.

For someone who was capable of masterfully hosting feasts for an entire army, Byleth couldn’t help but find his messy nature and poorly executed one-on-one tea party to be strangely endearing.

Offering her best smile, Byleth nodded. “Thank you.”

Seated and comfortable, Claude quickly poured the cooling tea into the cups, successfully passing one of them off to Byleth without spilling a single drop. Despite how long the tea had been sitting out since it finished brewing, it was still at a decent temperature to be consumed. Byleth sipped at it borderline greedily, wanting to finish it before the flavor became tainted with time… and before she inevitably passed out from exhaustion.

She had avoided it when she returned to her own room from her bath, but knowing that she was sitting on the soft plush of a bed manipulated Byleth’s control over her weariness. Not just that day’s work was catching up with her, but she could sense the entire week’s worth of effort weighing her down yet again, not to mention her lack of sleep. Her legs were aching and her arms felt heavy, hands trembling even as she held her tea cup. Worst of all, her eyelids were drooping and her mind was wandering. She could have sworn that she heard Claude begin speaking to her after they downed their beverages, but she couldn’t recall what it was he was saying; so much as listening was asking for too much from her.

“You’re looking pretty tired there.” She managed to make out Claude’s voice through the haze of her fatigue and she squeezed her eyes shut for a breath, straining her focus to listen to him.

“I apologize.” Byleth hadn’t intended to respond in such a formal manner but it was getting harder and harder for her to think straight. “I haven’t had a full night’s rest all week.”

Her confession wasn’t met with the admonishment she had expected. Rather, she didn’t receive an immediate response at all. Silence accompanied them for a handful of moments thereafter and Byleth’s head dipped every couple of seconds, consciousness becoming harder to maintain by the second. Her head felt fuzzy and her vision was blurry. She really was going to pass out right then and there on Claude’s bed during their get together. What a poor guest she had made during their first tea time excursion in his quarters…

In the midst of her struggle to remain awake, Byleth had failed to notice the movements of Claude. It was only until she felt the mattress dip beside her that she realized he had moved from his spot across from her and took position next to her.

Desperately trying to blink her tiredness away, Byleth opened her mouth in preparation of asking what he was doing but his actions proved to be faster. A warmth wrapped around her back and ended on the side of her head, carefully angling her face so one side of her forehead rested against what she assumed was his shoulder.

_Ah. That’s his arm around me._

“I know.” Despite their proximity, Claude’s voice sounded so far away. Byleth didn’t understand what he meant by his words, already needing to dig to remember what they had just said to one another. Thankfully, he offered more context, giving mercy to her and her sleep deprived state. “I’ve seen you wandering around at dawn until late at night. Given the circumstances, I know it can’t be helped but you don’t need to do everything by yourself. Let me help. That’s why I’m here.”

The words he shared with her and their meanings came and went as quickly as he had spoken them. Byleth sensed a flaw in his concerns — something that wasn’t right, perhaps even hypocritical — but she was too tired and comfortable to completely think it through. Claude’s arm across her back and his body pressed up against her side were warm and soothing; she slumped into him, cuddling up as close as possible.

Though she lacked the will and mental capacity to reprimand him at present, Byleth would remember his assurances when she next awoke. In the meantime, just as she was about to slip into unconsciousness, she muttered quietly into his shoulder.

“Go to sleep, Claude.”

Whether or not she dreamed his body shaking with a laugh was unclear. All that was certain was that when Byleth opened her eyes to a new day, she found herself laying awkwardly on Claude’s bed with him asleep next to her, his arm no doubt having gone numb as it remained positioned behind her back.

**Author's Note:**

> me: it's plotless fluff
> 
> me: spends half the fic rambling in giant ass paragraphs like I always do because I'm a fucking idiot
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/toast_ryu) where I cry about Claude & Byleth all day sobss


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